Author Topic: hello from California  (Read 1940 times)

Offline steveca

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hello from California
« on: November 27, 2007 - 03:02:01 PM »
71 383 2bbl - rust free fortunately.  Question though - passenger front fender had a slight impact pushing it back flush with the door (which is perfect and I don't want to force open).  Any advice?  (I was thinking of removing all the fender bolts as if I was going to take it off with the exception of the bolt which is visible only when the door is open).  Any thoughts appreciated.  Thanks for a great site!




Offline Moparal

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #1 on: November 27, 2007 - 04:00:00 PM »
Welcome Steve,   cant you take the inner fender shield off and undo the door hinges?

And we need pictures  :useless:

Offline Moparal

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #2 on: November 27, 2007 - 08:10:16 PM »
 :2thumbs: :burnout:  Looks like it should hook up and go :bananasmi

Offline blaart

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #3 on: November 27, 2007 - 08:13:18 PM »
Welcome,
so you want to open the door so you can move the fender forward?IT would help a lot if you told me which panel was sticking out further or are they butted up together,anyway the way to do it is first of all... see if you can force a cloth down into the gap and put a cloth in the gap to the bumper!,,,,slacken all the bolts off except the top rear fender bolt and one of the fender sill-bolts,[remove the bolts to the front panel except the top ones nearest the hood]get someone to hold the fender near the headlight [any sideways outward movement here will cause the fender to hit the door!] and get someone else to hold onto the lower rear part of the wheel arch and pull the fender forwards slightly [not too hard!] then slowly undo the last sill bolt.As soon as the bottom of the fender moves stop pulling.you dont want the bottom to move too much without the top being loose! if you get a bit of a gap try to get a cloth into it then nip the bolt up very slowly while watching the gap...undo the top bolt while someone else pulls the top forward. again put lots of cloth into the gap and nip up the bolt...GET A BIG GAP!.Then you should be able to open the door.Get someone to open the door REALLY SLOWLY while YOU watch the gap all the way down but especially at the top. get rid of the cloth and run masking tape all down the gap both on the fender and door.you will have to loosen all the bolts off quite a lot to get the fender to move. when your ready to get your gap to the door make sure all the fender bolts are loose and then with someone holding the front,someone else holding the rear and watching the gap close the door.Stand side on to the car and slap the top part of the fender with the palms of your hands forward a few times away from the door this gives you a good idea on how far the fender will move each time you hit it.The panel should only move a small amount each time when you do it this way.When you think youve got your gap.open the door even slower than before ,IMPORTANT: when you think your there OPEN the door and do up the rear fender bolts first! Make sure the hood lines up nice then close the door SLOWLY again because the fender may have moved when you done the bolts up.thats pretty much it. please im not trying to sound off like i know better,but i would strongly advise on not moving the door,any hinge undone on the door will cause the bottom of the door to move forwards and hit the fender and e-body doors are very heavy! and if your new to bodywork lining up doors is one of the hardest things to do..
good luck!
70 T/A

Offline moparman11

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #4 on: November 27, 2007 - 10:43:09 PM »
Welcome Steve, I am sure someone on here will give you the help you need for your door, Good luck, John
1973 RALLYE CHALLENGER

Offline 4Cruizn

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #5 on: November 27, 2007 - 10:54:44 PM »
Welcome to cc,com! Sounds like a sweet car and we would all like to see some pics!!  Hope you enjoy the site and get your door open.   :cheers:




Offline Jacksboys

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #6 on: November 28, 2007 - 12:46:01 AM »
Welcome to the site   :2thumbs:
1971 Dodge Challenger:  360/904/3.23
   
Success is the maximum utilization of the ability that you have. - Zig Ziglar

Offline 71340RT

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #7 on: November 28, 2007 - 02:23:20 AM »
Welcome to the site and sounds like a great rust free car. Post some pictures when you get a chance.


70 Plymouth Cuda 340 4-speed
71 Dodge Challenger RT 340 automatic
1973 Dodge Challenger 360 automatic EFI
2002 Harley Davidson Dyna Wide Glide
2003 Dodge Stratus RT coupe
2009 Challenger RT Classic B5 Blue
2014 Ram Express 5.7 Hemi 4X4

Offline steveca

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #8 on: November 28, 2007 - 12:06:53 PM »
here's some pics - needless to say, it needs a lot of attention.  BTW not TOTALLY rust free, the vinyl top caused some issues - but the floor pans, trunk, frame rails are just fine.  I think I'll be replacing the Dutchman panel at the very least and the A-pillars will need some work - you think it's ok to just use filler on those (metal-on-metal, bondo, fiberglass?) as long as they're structurally  OK?
thanks

Offline Robert1050

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #9 on: November 28, 2007 - 05:48:12 PM »
From one Kalifornian to another, Welcome to the site!

Is that a bench seat I see in the interior?
1970 Challenger R/T 440-4
1970 'Cuda 440-6 (Gone, but not forgotten)
1999 Sea-Doo XPL 69.0 MPH
1998 Sea-Doo XPL 66.3 MPH
1981 Eliminator Daytona 80.3 MPH

Offline steveca

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #10 on: November 28, 2007 - 06:26:04 PM »
sure is - how common are they and where can I get covers/parts(console)?

Offline 72hemi

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #11 on: November 28, 2007 - 06:35:17 PM »
Legendary sells upholstery kits for the bench seats, if you want to stay with it instead of buckets. Not very common in the e-bodies to hae a bench seat.
1972 Dodge Challenger 340 6 Pack 4-speed
1996 Dodge Viper GTS Coupe

Offline Oldschool

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #12 on: December 20, 2007 - 09:31:04 PM »
Welcome aboard......    :wave:   
Ken  --  In Georgia

MOPAR-------"Built To Run------Here To Stay"

Offline Morris'_Mopars

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #13 on: December 20, 2007 - 10:19:11 PM »
WELCOME
Morris' Mopars LLC
Raymond, Illinois
Mopar performance at affordable prices.

Offline steveca

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Re: hello from California
« Reply #14 on: January 05, 2008 - 02:31:41 PM »
finally got to work on the car over the holidays.  Here's what I came up with which might be useful to others.  Since the front of the fender was a bit crumpled I figured I couldn't no any harm, so I loosened all the fender bolts I could get to, attached a come-along, one end to my truck hitch and the other to the front of the fender, and started to tighten.  Once I got about 3/16 inch separation between the fender and the door, a pulled one more "click" to "stretch" it overnight.  Left it alone, came back the next day, and I was able to open the door and undo the inner bolt as well.  Worked OK.  Thanks for all the advice and I hope maybe I've helped someone with the same dilemma I had.